South Africa: Constitutional Court rules on citizenship
Published: 6/May/2025
Source: GroundUp (Cape Town)
Law which stripped citizenship from South Africans who took another country’s citizenship is unconstitutional
By Tania Broughton
The Constitutional Court has confirmed the unconstitutionality of a law which automatically stripped South Africans of citizenship if they took citizenship of another country.
The court, in a unanimous decision, has struck down the relevant section of the South African Citizenship Act, declaring it invalid from its promulgation in October 1995.
The court also declared that affected people are now deemed not to have lost their citizenship.
The respondents, the Minister and Director-General of Home Affairs, were ordered to pay the costs of the application.
The matter was initially brought to court by the Democratic Alliance. The party lost its initial challenge in the Pretoria High Court, which ruled that the section was not irrational and did not infringe on constitutional rights, but won in the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA).
The matter came before the Constitutional Court for confirmation of the SCA unconstitutionality ruling. The Minister and the DG agreed to abide by the decision of the court.
Read further: https://groundup.org.za/article/constitutional-court-rules-on-citizenship/